The Yankees catcher went 2-for-4, homering on the first pitch he saw in his first rehab game with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. Sanchez also doubled and struck out twice against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown.

The bat is ready: At least from health perspective. Sanchez strained his right biceps with a swing in Baltimore on April 8 and went straight to the disabled list. In batting practice on Tuesday, Sanchez let it loose, ripping line drives all over. Then he took the first throw he saw from Mark Appel, the Phillies' Triple-A starter, and put it over the wall in right-center field. It was a wind-aided blast -- the wind was rough all night -- but it took substantial strength to just get the ball out there.

Playing defense was important: When asked which was more important from a health standpoint for him -- playing defense or hitting -- predictably, Sanchez said both. But manager Al Pedrique said it was the former. "For me, probably (playing defense) the full game," said Pedrique, though Sanchez actually played just seven innings -- which was by design. "Just to test him a little bit. I was hoping that they would run on him. We didn't get any chance. He threw between innings, he looked good. But to answer your question, I think the key is what he shows behind the plate. We know he's going to help defensively. We want to make sure that he's healthy and 100 percent."

Sanchez will play again Wednesday: He's slated for another seven innings behind the plate. Then he'll DH for a full nine innings on Thursday. If all goes well, he'll likely rejoin the Yankees in Chicago to face the Cubs on Friday. That would bump Austin Romine back to the backup and send Kyle Higashioka back to Triple-A.